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THAAD Radar: Examination of a Cost Saving Initiative
THAAD Radar Examination of a Cost Saving Initiative Author:John W. Lewis This is a NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY CA report procured by the Pentagon and made available for public release. It has been reproduced in the best form available to the Pentagon. It is not spiral-bound, but rather assembled with Velobinding in a soft, white linen cover. The Storming Media report number is A446263. The abstract provided by... more » the Pentagon follows: This thesis analyzes two acquisition reform initiatives that made Theater High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) Radar Product Office's Best of Breed Transmit/Receive Module study a success and examines the risk involved in the pursuit of this study. The initiatives are Cost As an Independent Variable (CAIV) and commercial items in the form of dual-use technology. Analysis of the radar subsystem of THAAD reveals a major cost driver to be the transmit/receive (T/R) module in the antenna equipment. The Best of Breed study examined techniques in the design, engineering, and manufacturing of these modules and its components in order to aggressively reduce the unit cost. Using tenets of CAIV, THAAD Radar Product Office was able to define a study such that the contractor would recommend a low risk solution to achieve cost reductions of almost 50% for the module. Additionally, the Product Office was able to accomplish this without sacrificing performance or schedule. The commercial application of the T/R module was an important factor in motivating the contractor to seek aggressive cost reductions. Lessons from this case may be applicable to other programs seeking to reduce cost.« less